India should focus on women's inclusion in economy: Lagarde

Agencies

January 23, 2018

Davos, Jan 23: IMF chief Christine Lagarde today said India must continue with reforms especially in the financial services sector and should urgently focus on broad-based and true inclusion of women in its economy.

Addressing a press conference here as part of the all-women co-chairs of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meet, Lagarde said IMF research has shown that raising women's participation in the workforce to the level of men can boost Indian economy by 27 percent.

She also expressed concern over the high level of discrimination faced by women in rural India and emphasised that there is an urgent need to address this issue.

Lagarde reiterated IMF's forecast of 7.4 percent growth for India and said it is obviously one of the fastest growing large economies in the world.

According to her, future growth would depend on how the country carries forward the reform process.

Lagarde said India must continue with its reforms, especially in the financial services sector and the one area that needs special focus is gender equality.

"I genuinely hope there will be a focus on inclusion of Indian women in the economy. We have research to show that India's GDP can grow by 27 percent if the women are brought to the same level of men in terms of economic and workforce participation," she said.

In its latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) update released here on Monday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected India growing at 7.4 percent in 2018 as against China's 6.8 percent, making it the fastest growing country among emerging economies.

The Indian economy is estimated to expand 7.8 percent in 2019, as per the IMF.

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Cut all ties with Israel and impose arms, trade embargo; history will record our action: Iran to Muslim countries

News Network

May 5,2024

Iran has urged Muslim countries to cut all relations with the Israeli regime as means of pressuring Tel Aviv to end its ongoing genocidal war on the Gaza Strip.

Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks on Saturday, addressing the 15th Heads of State and Government Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Gambia’s capital Banjul.

“Beyond doubt, this time period will also pass by, despite all its hardships and adversities for the Palestinian nation,” he said.

“However, the manner and quality of the role that is played by us, Muslim states, in the face of this crisis will go down in history,” the top diplomat added.

“Undoubtedly, severance of diplomatic and economic ties and [imposition of] practical arms and trade embargo [on Israel] serves as an important means of cessation of its genocide in Gaza and atrocities in the West Bank and the Noble al-Quds.”

At least 34,654 people have died in Gaza since October 7, when the Israeli regime began the war in response to al-Aqsa Storm, a retaliatory operation by the coastal sliver’s resistance groups.

Despite the unabated campaign of bloodshed and destruction, the regime has so far fallen short of realizing its goals, including defeating Gaza’s resistance, causing forced displacement of the territory’s entire population to neighboring Egypt, and enabling the release of those who were taken captive during al-Aqsa Storm.

Amir-Abdollahian said Gaza’s developments proved that elimination of the Palestinian resistance “was nothing but an illusion.”

“Because the Israeli regime is not a legitimate government. It is only an occupying apartheid power,” he said, adding, “Passage of time is not going to lend legitimacy to an occupying power.”

The foreign minister asserted that realization of sustainable peace and security in the region was only possible through cessation of the regime’s occupation of Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon, return of the Palestinian refugees to their homeland, and manifestation of Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

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